A meal cooked with love is indeed one of the most beautiful experiences, especially in a world dominated by fast food and an industry intent on designing food that is merely tasty. The return to the stove, the selection of ingredients, and finally, the coming together with people is probably one of the most profound and enriching joys we can experience.
Ana Sofia Fehn embodies this philosophy not just in her cooking but in her life. As a U.S. and Costa Rican actress whose journey weaves together the art of performance and culinary passion, she brings a unique perspective to everything she does. “I was already doing a lot of cooking so why not try filming and editing it?” she explains, reflecting on how her foray into cooking content began during the pandemic, inspired by her love for cooking and the desire to see more female creators in the culinary space.
In our interview, paired with an enchanting photoshoot by Jeffrey Chan, Ana Sofia’s vibrant spirit is captured at the market and in the kitchen. Enjoy!
Hey Ana Sofia! You started your TV debut on “Modern Family” and have since worked on various commercials and plays. Can you share what initially drew you to acting and how you landed your first role?
I was drawn to acting from a very young age, as young as I can remember. I always loved performing and entertaining my friends and family, and found myself doing accents and impersonations of characters I loved. Jim Carrey was notably my favorite actor growing up; I memorized his performance in the Grinch from start to finish and would go around performing it endlessly. As I got involved in musical theater and other performing arts in elementary school, I knew there was nothing else I wanted to do with my life. Except maybe become an NHL hockey player. I landed my first commercial role in Los Angeles for Ford Cars, it filmed in the back lot of Jimmy Kimmel Live in Hollywood about a month into starting drama school at USC (University of Southern California). My TV debut was a year later, I actually had the audition and callback on my 18th birthday during my sophomore year of college. I had an agent at the time, and got the audition notice late the night before. The audition and callback process all happened quite quickly and it was a dream to work with the Modern Family team.
You are fluent in English, Spanish, and French, and you have a background in various sports and classical voice training. How do these diverse skills enhance your versatility as an actress?
I am fluent in English and Spanish; my French is strong but not natively fluent – I studied French in school for several years. I had a very diverse upbringing in terms of my interests. On the one hand, my whole world was artistic and in the humanities. I loved reading, writing, history, acting, singing, and playing music. On the other hand, my whole world was also all sports and training. I grew up playing AAA prep hockey across the U.S. and Canada, which is not the most typical actor’s background. But what it’s given me is a wide range of perspectives on so many life experiences, and that only enhances my acting and application to the characters I play. I am fortunate that my parents made it a priority to raise my siblings and I in a bilingual household, which has translated both in the roles I can play on the traditional acting side as well as in my content creation on social media.
“There is such a connection between food, culture, family, and love, and all of these things drive my interest in the space.”
Growing up as one of seven kids in a Costa Rican family, how has your family supported your journey?
My family has always known I’ve wanted to be in the performing arts and always wanted to be an actress. They supported me in being able to take piano and voice lessons, driving me to auditions and rehearsals, supporting my dream to audition for college acting programs, and continue to support me today.
With a significant following on your social media pages where you share cooking content, what inspired you to start creating and sharing these videos?
I was largely inspired by the fact that I love to cook and I love to film and I did not see many female content creators at the time in comparison to males. It started off as just a side hobby; I was already doing a lot of cooking so why not try filming and editing it? It was during COVID, and it really was a creative and happy outlet for me.
“Traveling has opened my world to flavors and ingredients I didn’t even know existed.”
What are some of your favorite dishes to cook and share with your followers, and what makes them special to you?
My favorite dishes are the most creative ones, unique takes on classic dishes. They are a lot of fun to come up with, and my inspiration comes from so many places. Sometimes I will get inspiration from what is in season at the farmers market, sometimes from a movie I watched, sometimes from a plate my mom would make for us as kids. I try to do a lot of research when it comes to recipe development or preparation because each plate is special to me, a piece of my work.
How has your passion for travel influenced your cooking style and the types of recipes you share on social media?
Traveling has opened my world to flavors and ingredients I didn’t even know existed. I’m very grateful that my parents raised us eating a wide variety of food from different parts of the world. When I moved to Los Angeles and began traveling on my own, however, things really changed for me. I tried an oyster pancake in Xiamen, Adobo in Manila, Supplì in Rome, Nasi Goreng in Bali. I had Thai food for the first time. I ate at every Italian restaurant I possibly could in Los Angeles. There is such a connection between food, culture, family, and love, and all of these things drive my interest in the space. A common denominator I have found in my travels, is the importance of cooking seasonally with local produce, something I aim to do as much as I can in my content and in my life.
“Music is such a huge part of my day-to-day life from the moment I wake up. It guides my workflow, my energy, my content, my auditions, everything.”
As a cook, actress, and content creator, how do you balance these different roles?
My whole life has been a balancing act of sorts, since I was little, I always had multiple passions that existed in seemingly different worlds. I loved school and academics, but I also loved sports intensely, I loved acting and performing intensely, and I also loved cooking, and I also dreamed of having my own production company and writing a book. I remember thinking how am I possibly going to choose? There’s no way I can do all these things. Even writing that out I am so beyond grateful I’ve been given an opportunity to intersect so much of what I love in my work today. There are a lot of moving pieces, but I am fortunate to be working at a time when there is so much crossover in these spaces and artists/creatives aren’t expected to stick to one thing. Organization and time management are two of my best friends, and written lists save me. There are few things more gratifying than physically crossing off items on a to-do list. I also have a really incredible team that supports my different endeavors and help make it all possible.
Aside from cooking, you have a passion for surfing, music, and art. What kind of music are you listening to right now?
This question is so exciting to me, music is such a huge part of my day-to-day life from the moment I wake up. It guides my workflow, my energy, my content, my auditions, everything. I’m listening to such a wide variety because it depends on what I’m doing throughout the day, but I listen to a lot of house music, jazz, electro swing, film scores, and Latin music. My friend also recently showed me an Italian artist named Negramaro who I’ve been listening to on repeat.
The most important thing in life is?
In the simplest terms, being happy, doing the things you love with the people you love.
This gifted photographer also crafted a wonderful series with Paula, for our C-Heads print volume 38. The issue delves into the art of slowing down, celebrates the joy of crafting, invites you to feel the freedom from society’s temporal constraints, and captures the alluring sentiment that everything looks more beautiful under the sun.
